1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display technique for a setting screen of an information processing apparatus that enables an operator to execute settings for a post-processing apparatus that executes post-processing applied to printed products, and further relates to an image forming apparatus that executes print processing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electro-photographic image forming apparatuses and inkjet printing apparatuses can provide high speed and high quality outputs. A new business model “Print On Demand (referred to as POD)” can handle a large scale of print products and print jobs.
POD includes print processing and related post-processing performed according to user's needs, for example, in an office environment including an image forming apparatus and various post-processing apparatuses, such as a bookbinding apparatus and a sheet cutting machine (hereinafter referred to as “finishers”), connected to the image forming apparatus.
In the print processing for POD, a device driver (hereinafter referred to as a “printer driver”) of an image forming apparatus can automatically produce a print job including print attributes relating to post-processing applied to printed products, based on restriction information (i.e., information restricting finisher's functions). As discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-078449, various items can be set as functions of a bookbinding machine, such as:
(a) Whether the bookbinding machine should pick up printed products being stacked from an uppermost position or from a lowermost position; and
(b) Whether the bookbinding machine should execute post-processing for printed products set in a face-up condition or for printed products set in a face-down condition.
The printer driver can automatically set an output order (e.g., ascending order/descending order) of the pages and an output direction (e.g., face-up/face-down) of the pages based on functions of the bookbinding machine, so that the bookbinding processing can be correctly performed for the printed products set in the bookbinding machine. In this case, a print job produced by the printer driver reflects specific information specifying finisher functions. Thus, the user needs not confirm the functions relating to the finisher (e.g., the above-described two functions).
Furthermore, in the production of a print job for POD, the type of a finisher connected to the image forming apparatus can be manually set or can be automatically identified. Thus, a user interface (UI) screen of a host computer displaying items relating to the functions can be controlled (or changed) based on the type of an identified finisher and the information specifying the functions of this finisher. A user can perform (i.e., input or select) necessary settings of various functions through the UI screen according to user's individual needs (e.g., cutting method, binding method, stapling or bookbinding designation, etc.). In response to a user's input on the UI screen, the printer driver can produce a print job including control commands for outputting final printed products. The produced print job is output to the image forming apparatus and to the finisher connected to the image forming apparatus.
For example, when a finisher having a stapling function is connected to the image forming apparatus, the printer driver can enable a user to execute stapling settings by providing a stapling setting field as one of function items displayed on the UI screen. In this case, the display contents of the UI screen are controlled by the printer driver based on the information specifying the functions of the finisher. The user needs not confirm the function relating to the finisher (e.g., the function relating to stapling setting).
Furthermore, when a finisher not connected via a physical conveyance path to the image forming apparatus is used to process printed products, the operator must confirm finisher functions beforehand and set the output of the image forming apparatus so as to conform to the finisher functions.
For example, a middle stitch bookbinding machine can be used to produce final printed products. In this case, the operator must execute the settings for arranging two pages of image on a recording medium (e.g., a recording paper sheet) having a size two times the page size of final printed products.
However, when the image forming apparatus is connected to a specific finisher (e.g., a bookbinding machine) whose information is not incorporated in the printer driver, an operator of the image forming apparatus must perform various print settings considering the functions of the newly connected finisher. If there is any restriction(s) relating to added finisher function(s) influencing the item(s) relating to other function(s) of the printer driver, the operator must perform necessary settings considering the effects of the restriction(s). In such a case, it will be difficult for an operator to accurately determine various settings necessary for the post-processing.
If it is known that a specific bookbinding machine is later connected to the image forming apparatus, the printer driver can be programmed beforehand to control the display of a UI screen or print attributes based on specific information specifying finisher functions. However, after the configuration (and contents) of the printer driver is fixed, the printer driver cannot recognize any function(s) of a newly connected finisher, e.g., a sheet cutting machine, a collating machine, or any other finisher other than the bookbinding machine. Thus, the printer driver cannot control the print attributes requiring the use of a newly added and connected finisher (e.g., a sheet cutting machine or a collating machine), unless the printer driver can be appropriately updated considering the use of the newly connected finisher.
Furthermore, when a printer driver UI screen can display function items based on the specific information specifying finisher functions, the printer driver cannot recognize functions of a newly added and connected finisher and accordingly cannot control (or change) the display of the function items on the UI screen. Thus, the operator must confirm the restrictions relating to the function(s) of the finisher and must accurately determine various settings necessary for the post-processing contents.